Atlanta etc.: Marilyn Wolf's Food Blog and Restaurant Blog

A booth on campus introduced me to Canopy Street Market so I decided to pay a visit. The market is located in the Haymarket along the canopy that once protected train passengers. I found a small but complete market with some of everything that one needs for daily life. The market's selection included both depth and breadth without the exhausting aisles that characterize modern mega-markets. They have a good selection of deli meats and cheeses. I left with dried bananas and sliced almonds to use with my breakfast cereal.

I spent a few minutes wandering around Smart & Final for the first time. Based on my trip through the aisles, it appears that their business model is the food version of Home Depot's strategy---leverage both the home and business markets. Home Depot's initial strategy was dual-pronged: provide the types of materials and supplies that contractors need; use the cachet of contractors to attract the home improvers, who provide higher volume to in turn lower prices for both the contractors and home markets. These huge bags of chocolate first caught my attention. I doubt that a huge home market exists for giant bags of fondue chocolate. And how many home cooks even have room for containers this large? Down the road, a visit to CVS presented this interesting combination of items. Their array of bourbons is truly impressive. Who knew? I certainly didn't.

Milu and I enjoyed a visit to the Lotte market. This Korean chain caters to a broad range of cuisines. These huge bags of whole wheat flour greeted us at the entrance. We found Indian okra and American okra side-by-side. The American version seemed a little shorter and plumper but the differences were subtle. Not so with this Thai okra, a completely different beast. I've never noticed Thai okra before. My curiosity has been piqued.

I visited North Druid Hills and Briarcliff today and discovered that Fresh Market is now closed. Could this have anything to do with the Amazon acquisition of Whole Foods?

My hotel was located near the Co-Op Market. They came in handy for snacks to tide me over on my activities. The store is smallish but nicely appointed. The staff was extremely friendly and helpful. The store of course stocks very nice produce, meats, etc. This shelf displays some of their Alaskan items. My main destination was their preserved meat display for portable protein. They have a large selection of what looked like high-quality jerky but I went with sausage. One sausage was from the Alaska-Siberian brand and was wonderful: just soft enough, fatty and moist, a meaty flavor from the caribou (hey, it's Alaska) without being overly gamey.

For my last night in Switzerland, I decided to take a snack back to the hotel. So I visited the campus supermarket, located right next to the train stop and convention center. It is a little larger than a U. S. convenience store. It certainly carries a lot of prepared items, catering as it does to students, but it also has some more interesting selections. Stacks of cases of beer greet patrons at the entrance. The cheeses include both major brands and more local selections. I chose a very nice Emmenthaler. I also picked up a loaf of wonderful, crusty bread sprinkled with seeds. The bread in Switzerland is a treat. The wine section spans the back walls. Naturally, the store featured a large selection of chocolates. I picked up a five pack of Cailler dark chocolate bars. The prices were competitive with good U. S. prices for these brands. Given that Switzerland's prices are in general very high, that makes these bars a bargain. And here is something you don't se...